Chamber and committees

A lot of employers are really struggling to recruit staff, particularly for fixed-term or temporary contracts. Is it a good sign that Social Security Scotland is managing to recruit staff at pace despite that?

It sounds difficult. We might be getting to the point where it is impossible for a centre-left Government to work within a fiscal framework that has been set by a more right-wing Government elsewhere, while also mitigating a lot of that Government’s decisions. Is the situation a demonstration of why we require independence?

Good morning. I have a few questions about two big policy matters and how they affect homelessness, so I would appreciate it if we could do a bit of a quick-fire exchange.

The Parliament expects to deliberate next week on the emergency legislation for the rent freeze. I am sure that you are painfully familiar with the arguments that the freeze could increase homelessness because of landlords taking their properties out of the rental market. Is that a legitimate concern?

Thank you. Do you think that the rent freeze will have a positive impact on tenants? Could it help prevent homelessness?

Finally, from your perspective, did the eviction ban during the pandemic have a positive impact on tackling homelessness?

Do you think that it could prevent people from becoming homeless who would otherwise have become homeless because they cannot afford a rent increase?

Thank you for that comprehensive answer. The priorities of the spending review here, particularly the ones around child poverty and the climate crisis, comprise things that the committee has heard have particular effects on minority ethnic communities and single parents. Budgets are about decisions and prioritising. Is the prioritisation of those issues something that you support? Is it a contrast with last week’s announcement?

Good morning, Deputy First Minister. Last week, we heard from the Child Poverty Action Group in Scotland about a number of asks of the Scottish Government, including some mitigation measures.

Professor Philip Alston, the UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, said:

“mitigation comes at a price and is not sustainable”.

Do you agree with that comment, and will you give an indication of how much of the Scottish Government’s spending is currently going towards mitigation?

Thank you for that. It is clear from the fiscal announcement last week that the UK Government is going down—funnily enough—a very conservative path, in cutting tax for high earners and uncapping bankers’ bonuses. Peter Kelly from the Poverty Alliance told the committee that governing is about decisions. Does the Scottish Government have different priorities, and is it making different decisions?

My questions are for Danny Boyle. We heard earlier from the Deputy First Minister about issues with actions here very much depending on when and whether we get money from decisions that are made down south, and how much money that is. The UK fiscal announcement last week will, of course, have massive implications in many ways. What is your take on its human rights implications?